World News in Brief: April 6

Philippine troops rescued an Indonesian hostage on April 5 following a gunfight that killed three Abu Sayyaf militants in the waters of Simisa Island in the southern Philippine province of Sulu. But another hostage died due to drowning, the military added.

* Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on April 5 that the country would withdraw from ratifying the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

* Two borders patrol police were shot dead by gunmen when they were praying in a mosque in southern Thailand's Yala on April 5. The shooting occurred on April 5 afternoon when four armed men stormed the mosque and fired at the two policemen.

* The Japanese government on April 5 said a mandatory evacuation order issued in the wake of the nuclear disaster in Fukushima Prefecture will be partially lifted from next Wednesday (April 10) for a town that hosts the crippled Daiichi nuclear power facility.

* US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on April 5 that he is confident that there will be a third meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chairman of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un.

* France on April 5 considered talks about offering Britain further delay to exit from the European Union (EU) were "premature," calling on London to propose a credible alternative plan by next week to enjoy longer extension to Brexit negotiation, according to a local newspaper.

* The US Treasury on April 5 listed Venezuela-related companies and vessels as its designated targets in a new round of sanctions to pile up pressure on the Maduro government.

* David Malpass, 63, undersecretary for international affairs at the US Treasury Department, was selected as president of the World Bank Group for a five-year term beginning on April 9, 2019, the World Bank Group said in a statement on April 5.

* A two-day meeting of defense ministers from nine central and eastern European countries finished in Warsaw on April 5, during which the ministers held high-level discussions on common defense problems and the strengthening of NATO's eastern flank.

* Turkish Defense Minister said that three of the four F-35 fighter jets had been delivered by the United States and the last one is expected to be transferred on April 5.

* At least 83 people were injured on April 5 during clashes that broke out between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli soldiers near the fence of the border between eastern Gaza Strip and Israel, medics said.

* Secretary-General of the Arab League (AL) Ahmed Aboul-Gheit called on April 5 on all Libyan parties to practice self-restraint and immediately de-escalate the military situation in the western areas of the country. In a statement, the AL chief also urged the Libyan parties to abide by the political path as the only solution to the Libyan crisis.

* The Norwegian government said on April 5 that it would increase the penalties related to several environmental laws in order to fight against environmental crimes.

* The unprecedented floods across Iran over the past weeks have claimed the lives of at least 70 people and injured 791 people, the chief of Iran Emergency Organization told official IRNA news agency on April 5.

* Eight US trade organizations have urged President Donald Trump not to impose import tariffs on cars and car parts, saying an investigation that could potentially legitimize the duties "poses serious economic threat" to US economy and the wellbeing of its auto industry.

* Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will pay a working visit to Moscow next Monday (April 8) to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and the two presidents will discuss the implementation of joint energy projects and reconcile approaches on regional and international issues, the Kremlin said on April 5 in a statement.

* US President Donald Trump said on April 5 that the Federal Reserve (Fed) should lower interest rates and pursue "quantitative easing" policy in order to boost the US economy.

* The missile boat Pryluky of the Ukrainian Naval Forces and the HMCS Toronto of the Royal Canadian Navy held a joint passing exercise in the Black Sea, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said in a statement On April 5. The drills are aimed at strengthening stability and security in the Black Sea region, it said.

* Militants loyal to the Taliban completely took control of the turbulent Ab Kamari district in Afghanistan's western Badghis province overnight, an official said on April 6.

* As a result of the Venezuela migrant crisis, an estimated 1.1 million children will need protection and access to basic services across Latin America and the Caribbean in 2019, the UN children's agency said on April 5.

* A Cuban senior officer predicted that there will be more forest fires because of effects brought by climate change.

* French Minister of Ecology Transition Francois de Rugy on April 5 warned that the risk of wildfires remained high this year due to longer period of drought and rising temperatures prompted by climate change.

* The number of Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) spiked this week, surpassing the 1,000 mark, a UN spokesman said on April 5.

* A shooting has killed one person and injured another at a US naval air station in Virginia on April 5, the station said on social media.